DNA, gay-therapy bills advance in Legislature

The state could take DNA samples from people convicted for certain disorderly persons offenses under a bill that a Senate committee approved on Thursday.

Other legislation that advanced Thursday included bills to outlaw gay conversion therapy for minors and to crack down on inmates receiving government benefits. Lawmakers also debated whether to prohibit employers from conducting background checks on job applicants before extending a conditional job offer.

Disorderly persons

Under a bill that the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee approved unanimously, people convicted of shoplifting, prostitution, drug offenses or certain other disorderly persons crimes would have to submit to DNA sampling.

Currently, people convicted of first- through fourth-degree crimes must submit a DNA sample to the state, which adds it to a database and tries to match it with samples found at crime scenes.

“By expanding the DNA database, we can greatly improve the ability of law enforcement agencies to positively identify the perpetrator and reduce the number of false convictions,” said Sen. Paul Sarlo, D-Wood-Ridge, one of the bill’s sponsors.

The legislation heads to the full Senate next. An Assembly version has not yet come up in committee.

Conversion therapy

Legislation prohibiting “gay-conversion therapy,” which attempts to help people change their sexual orientation, was approved by an Assembly committee.

The bill would apply to licensed professionals, such as psychiatrists or social workers, and bar them from engaging in “sexual-orientation change efforts” with a person under 18 years old.

Supporters of the bill say the practice can cause psychological problems in children, while opponents of the legislation argued that it infringed on the rights of parents.

The Assembly Women and Children Committee approved it unanimously, with one abstention.

“Studies and personal testimony have shown this practice creates irreparable harm on young people struggling to come to terms with their sexuality,” said one of the bill’s sponsors, Assemblyman Tim Eustace, D-Maywood.

A Senate committee approved the bill March. Now it is waiting for votes in the full Assembly and Senate.

Inmates

After a state audit last month found that New Jersey inmates received $23 million in unemployment benefits and other government assistance over a two-year period, a committee approved legislation Thursday to crack down on those payments.

The bill — which the Senate Labor Committee approved unanimously — instructs the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development to cross-check the names and Social Security numbers of inmates with the names and Social Security numbers of people receiving government benefits.

Job applicants

The background check bill would allow employers to consider an applicant’s criminal history only after presenting the person with a conditional offer of employment.

It did not come up for a vote on Thursday; the Senate Labor Committee only conducted a hearing about the proposal. Supporters call it a “ban-the-box” bill because it would prohibit companies from including a check box on job applications asking about criminal history.

“A stable job is one of the most effective ways to reduce recidivism among the formerly incarcerated, resulting in a safer community and lower cost to tax-payers,” Sen. Sandra Bolden Cunningham, D-Hudson, said in a statement. “We should encourage rather than punish them for seeking honest, legal employment.”

Business representatives, though, said the bill would cause safety and security problems.

DNA, gay-therapy bills advance in Legislature

The state could take DNA samples from people convicted for certain disorderly persons offenses under a bill that a Senate committee approved on Thursday.

Other legislation that advanced Thursday included bills to outlaw gay conversion therapy for minors and to crack down on inmates receiving government benefits. Lawmakers also debated whether to prohibit employers from conducting background checks on job applicants before extending a conditional job offer.

Disorderly persons

Under a bill that the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee approved unanimously, people convicted of shoplifting, prostitution, drug offenses or certain other disorderly persons crimes would have to submit to DNA sampling.

Currently, people convicted of first- through fourth-degree crimes must submit a DNA sample to the state, which adds it to a database and tries to match it with samples found at crime scenes.

“By expanding the DNA database, we can greatly improve the ability of law enforcement agencies to positively identify the perpetrator and reduce the number of false convictions,” said Sen. Paul Sarlo, D-Wood-Ridge, one of the bill’s sponsors.

The legislation heads to the full Senate next. An Assembly version has not yet come up in committee.

Conversion therapy

Legislation prohibiting “gay-conversion therapy,” which attempts to help people change their sexual orientation, was approved by an Assembly committee.

The bill would apply to licensed professionals, such as psychiatrists or social workers, and bar them from engaging in “sexual-orientation change efforts” with a person under 18 years old.

Supporters of the bill say the practice can cause psychological problems in children, while opponents of the legislation argued that it infringed on the rights of parents.

The Assembly Women and Children Committee approved it unanimously, with one abstention.

“Studies and personal testimony have shown this practice creates irreparable harm on young people struggling to come to terms with their sexuality,” said one of the bill’s sponsors, Assemblyman Tim Eustace, D-Maywood.

A Senate committee approved the bill March. Now it is waiting for votes in the full Assembly and Senate.

Inmates

After a state audit last month found that New Jersey inmates received $23 million in unemployment benefits and other government assistance over a two-year period, a committee approved legislation Thursday to crack down on those payments.

The bill — which the Senate Labor Committee approved unanimously — instructs the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development to cross-check the names and Social Security numbers of inmates with the names and Social Security numbers of people receiving government benefits.

Job applicants

The background check bill would allow employers to consider an applicant’s criminal history only after presenting the person with a conditional offer of employment.

It did not come up for a vote on Thursday; the Senate Labor Committee only conducted a hearing about the proposal. Supporters call it a “ban-the-box” bill because it would prohibit companies from including a check box on job applications asking about criminal history.

“A stable job is one of the most effective ways to reduce recidivism among the formerly incarcerated, resulting in a safer community and lower cost to tax-payers,” Sen. Sandra Bolden Cunningham, D-Hudson, said in a statement. “We should encourage rather than punish them for seeking honest, legal employment.”

Business representatives, though, said the bill would cause safety and security problems.